BUENOS AIRES, Argentina — Argentina’s monthly inflation rate eased sharply to a single-digit rate in April for the first time in half a year, data released Tuesday showed, a closely watched indicator that bolsters President Javier Milei’s severe austerity program aimed at fixing the country’s troubled economy.
Even so, some experts warn that falling inflation isn’t necessarily an economic victory — rather the symptom of a painful recession. The IMF expects Argentina’s gross domestic product to shrink by 2.8% this year. “This place saves me,” Pacheco said. Sky-high prices have forced her to change her diet and habits to the point of giving up yerba mate,Retail sales in the first quarter of 2024 fell nearly 20% compared to the year before, a clip comparable to that of the 2020 pandemic lockdowns.
“It’s not his fault, it’s the Peronists who ruined the country, and Milei is trying to do his best,” said Rainer Silva, a Venezuelan taxi driver who fled his own country’s economic collapse for Argentina five years ago. “He’s like Trump, everyone’s against him.”